Mauna ~ (1 of 7) ~ The Beatitudes

SERIES OVERVIEW

The fifth, sixth and seventh chapters of Matthew’s Gospel are known, collectively, as “The Sermon on the Mount!” It has been called “The Greatest Sermon of All Time!” The teaching is very similar to Luke 6:17-49 which is referred to as “The Sermon on the Plain”. Scholars agree that this indicates these were common teachings and themes that Jesus spoke of frequently from place to place. Anything Jesus felt was important enough to repeat clearly deserves some deep study and application on our part. The Sermon on the Mount and The Sermon on the Plain form a short Discipleship 101 course for us. What are the BASICS of what it means to truly be a FULLY DEVOTED follower of Jesus? What should we do? How should we speak? How should we act? How should we treat others? What should our motives be? In November and December, Pastor G will take seven weeks to dig deep into these incredibly important teachings of Jesus in his new message series: MAUNA: Teachings from the Sermon on the Mount.

Here, in Week One: The Beatitudes, Pastor G takes us through Matthew 5:1-16.

MESSAGE NOTES

When He saw the crowds, He went up the mountain. After He sat down His disciples came to him. Then He began to teach them by saying: ~ Matthew 5:1-2

BEATITUDE: Supreme Blessedness

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. ~ Matthew 5:3

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ~ Matthew 5:4

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. ~ Matthew 5:5

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. ~ Matthew 5:6

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. ~ Matthew 5:7

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ~ Matthew 5:8

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.~ Matthew 5:9

We can either choose to be right OR we can choose to remain in relationship!

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things about you falsely on account of me. ~ Matthew 5:10-11

Rejoice and be glad because your reward is great in heaven, for they persecuted the prophets before you in the same way. ~ Matthew 5:12

You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its flavor, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled on by people. ~ Matthew 5:13

You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill cannot be hidden. People do not light a lamp and put it under a basket but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.~ Matthew 5:14-16

Be the Salt! Be the Light! Be the right attitude! Beatitude!

GO DEEPER
ALOHA GROUP DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

READ: Matthew 5:1-2 and 1 Corinthians 3:1-4DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1) Why do you think Jesus withdrew from the crowd here and only delivered this sermon to His closest disciples?

2) How might Jesus’ reasoning for only teaching this to His closest disciples be similar to Paul’s reasoning for his depth of teaching to the church in Corinth?

3) What does Paul mean when he differentiates between milk and meat here? How would you explain it to an unchurched person?

4) How would you personally assess your spiritual maturity level? Are you able to chew and digest “meat” or are you still at a “milk” level? What steps can you take to improve your ability to receive and digest the meatier teachings of the Bible?

READ: Matthew 5:3-12DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1) Jesus lists eight different beatitudes that He commands His followers to have.

2) Do you ever struggle with any of these? In what way? Do you find some of these easier to obey than others? Why or why not?

3) What do you think the current level of obedience to these beatitudes is for the Church Worldwide?

4) What impact can you have, as an individual, to improve that level in the Church Worldwide?

5) What impact can we have, as a local church, to improve that level in the Church Worldwide?

READ: Matthew 5:13-16 and Matthew 28:18-20DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

1) In what ways are Christians like salt? In what ways are Christian like light?

2) How do Christians sometimes lose our saltiness? What effect does that have on our ability to fulfill the Great Commission?

3) How do Christians sometimes cover our light with a basket? What effect does that have on our ability to fulfill the Great Commission?

4) Jesus says we need to remain “salty.”How can we make sure we don’t lose our flavor as an individual Christian? How can we make sure we don’t lose our flavor as a local church?

5) Jesus says we should instead put our light on a lampstand. What does He mean? How can you do that as an individual? How can we do that as a local church?